Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: The Mystery of the Spirits
SERIES: Snow & Winter
AUTHOR: C.S. Poe
PUBLISHER: Emporium Press
LENGTH: 231 pages
RELEASE DATE: December 30, 2021
BLURB:
Antique dealer Sebastian Snow and Homicide detective Calvin Winter have been happily married for a year and a half. In that time, there’s been nary a mystery in sight, and for a recovering sleuth like Sebastian, an uneventful life is exactly what he needs.
That is, until Calvin’s lieutenant enters the Emporium and demands insight on a bizarre object known as a spiritoscope, hailing from the early days of the Spiritualism movement. Sebastian’s extensive knowledge of Victorian curiosities leads him to consulting for the NYPD—putting him at odds with his husband. And as the bodies begin to stack up, so do the seemingly dead-end clues, which if Sebastian can’t make sense of, might result in a whole lot more death.
Mystery, murder, and marriage… Sebastian’s back.
REVIEW:
Well of course there are 9 million stories in the big city. And one of them unfortunately ends in murder. And the artifact left at the murder is just something that Antiques dealer Sebastian Snow would happen to be an expert in. His husband, Detective Calvin Winter is none too pleased when his boss asked for Seb to consult on said murder. But Seb is happy to help. Of course he can’t help but follow the trail and when he’s all the sudden the focus of reporters, another detective and potentially the killer, well you know this is going to be a problem. Given the danger and injuries these two have already been through, Calvin is determined that Seb should be safe. In his zeal to make that happen, well he might have overstepped a bit. And Seb will not stand for that. Thankfully, the case zigs and zags and in the end, our intrepid couple is happy to be done with this particular murderer.
I have to say that I was absolutely delighted when C.S. Poe announced that she would be putting out another book in this series. I adore Calvin and Sebastian and was really looking forward to this new book. It does not disappoint. As usual, there are richly detailed period information that is organically shared. As a history person, this made my little heart so happy 🙂 The Spiritualism movement has always been fascinating to me and here, in Poe’s deft hands we are privy to some of the more interesting quirks and personalities of the movement. I also love old gadgets and antique items, so that kept my interest as well. I’m always happy to revisit Max, Seb’s assistant, Beth who owns the bookstore next door to the Emporium and an added bonus of a cameo from another book 😉 Professor Snow doesn’t get a lot of page time, but it was good to see him and the dogs Maggie and Dillon again. And of course there’s Neil – who we are anxiously awaiting a book about 😉
The most interesting aspect of the book for me was the growth in Seb and Cal’s relationship and how they deal with conflict. Sebastian cannot help his curiosity and Cal cannot help his worry. When they really get into things, it doesn’t take terribly long for them to come together and for Cal to explain his reaction and for Seb to understand what causes it. There are some interesting moments with a newly introduced detective and some other new characters. And then there is the murder. This one ended up wrapped up pretty quickly but not easily and I enjoyed watching Seb follow the clues to a somewhat surprising end 😀 I could read about these guys forever. Highly recommended – this is another wonderful addition to this favorite series.
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